??Creativ Brief: Brand Position and Competition

A modern person sees an estimated 5,000 to 10,000 advertising messages every single day.?

Meanwhile, the human mind has remained finite, a limited space with a limited capacity for information. Thousands of brands, marks, and people compete to occupy the mindshare.?

Only a tiny fraction of directed messages enter a prospects mind, with the medium, senses, and established information acting as a filtering mechanism.?

The reality of our overinformed and overstimulated world requires an effective message to possess two things:

1. Simple, clear communications
2. An unoccupied position relative to others

Sharpening your message ensures it cuts into the mind. Finding new, unoccupied white space allows your message to stay there.?

The latest generation of video game consoles directly compete against one another, yet Nintendo consistently outsells both PlayStation and Xbox. The current lifetime approximate sales numbers of the latest generation are as follows - Nintendo Switch at 142 million units (61.3% of the market), PlayStation at 60 million units (25.9%), and Xbox at 30 million units (12.8%).?

The sales figures directly correlate to the initial release and marketing of each game console. Nintendo Entertain System launched in 1985, PlayStation in 1995, and Xbox in 2001. Each subsequent console brand occupied more of the market, but Nintendo’s ability to enter the market first and position itself as the first mass market console has allowed it to hold the number 1 selling position ever since.?

The reality reveals that once a brand has positioned itself as the de facto brand for a particular category, it’s difficult for any competitor to displace it.?

To create a new position in the mindshare of the consumer, once has to niche down, sharpen, and find where others are not. If you want to be first across the finish line, you need to invent a new race, not join an existing one you’re destined to lose. A new position with a sharp message is required.

3 Stories Dominating Media and Tech Headlines

Stunning breakthroughs from China's DeepSeek AI alarm U.S. rivals. Chinese AI startup DeepSeek has released an open-source AI model, DeepSeek-R1, which has significantly impacted the AI industry and major tech companies' stock prices.

Unlike other models that require substantial investment and subscription fees, DeepSeek-R1 offers advanced AI capabilities at a fraction of the cost, making it accessible to the public and affordable for developers.

Why it matters: This development challenges the dominance of Silicon Valley firms like OpenAI, Google, and Microsoft, indicating a shift towards more open and cost-effective AI development, potentially democratizing AI technology.

Oracle and Microsoft are reportedly in talks to take over TikTok. Reports are speculating that Oracle and a collection of investors, including Microsoft, are interested in acquiring TikTok from ByteDance. In this proposed deal, Oracle would oversee the application’s algorithm, data collection, and software updates - ByteDance would still get a slice of the pie, maintaining a minority shareholder status at TikTok if the deal were to go through.

Why it matters: For TikTok to remain operational in the United States, there needs to be a change of ownership, and it’s clear there are multiple parties interested in acquiring one of the world’s largest social media platforms. Other potential buyers of TikTok include Elon Musk, Shark Tank host Kevin O’Leary, and real estate billionaire Frank McCourt.

Google loses bid to dismiss US states' lawsuit over digital ads. A federal judge denied Google’s bid to dismiss the active lawsuit against them over alleged dominance in digital advertising markets.

Why it matters:? This is just one of the many antitrust cases made against Google in recent years, with growing pressure from governmental bodies for divestment of the key parts of Google’s business, including Google Chrome and the Android operating systems. In the near future, we could see a breakdown of what many currently see as an illegal monopoly in the digital marketplace.

Creativ Spotlight - Join AdTogether, Friday 3-7pm at Firestone Walker Brewery?

Advertising trade bodies, agencies, and small businesses in Los Angeles are hosting AdTogether, a massive community drive to support those affected by the fires, culminating in a live giving event at Firestone Walker Brewery in Venice on Friday, January 31st.?

The goal of the campaign is to collect pressing supplies while raising over $100,000 dollars for World Central Kitchen, who provides meals in response to humanitarian, climate, and community crises, and Ad Relief, who makes immediate and direct donations to advertising professionals affected by crises.?

To support the drive please show up to Firestone Walker Brewery in Venice on Friday or donate to World Central Kitchen or AdRelief.?

Stat of the Week - Google Dominating GenAI Search Market

Google leads the GenAI search landscape with 16.5 billion visits as of December 2024, drawing over 30 times more traffic than its closest competitor, ChatGPT, which had 517 million visits.

Platforms like Bing, Gemini, and Perplexity trail significantly behind, with visits in the hundreds of millions or less, showcasing Google's dominant position as of both mobile and desktop web traffic for GenAI searches. Time will tell if cost-efficient models like DeepSeek can displace its dominance.?

One Fun Thing - Better with Age

Some things get better with age, including Harrison Ford and single-malt Scotch whiskey. In a series of 12 episodic shorts directed by actor and filmmaker Joel Edgerton, Harrison Ford wanders the Scottish Highlands in a campaign by Glenmorangie Scotch whisky.

The campaign is an effort to subvert the typical representations of whiskey in advertising - traditional, with a serious lean into the history of the alcoholic beverage. Director Joel Edgerton hopes to “subvert the seriousness that often goes into an advertising campaign and have fun with that.” Read about it here.?